Oh man, holy crap, this chapter is long. Oh well, all the better it is for you!~ :3

Leaving the spiders' lair, I came upon a purple Mettaton poster. It was an announcement for his latest stage performance. A tragic tale of two star-crossed lovers, kept apart by the tides of fate… And it looked like it was almost time for the performance.

I sighed before heading on, knowing my fate of meeting up with the psycho robot was inevitable. Ahead, there was a tall brick-blue building, and a single vine growing on it. "OH? THAT HUMAN…" The voice was coming from above. Looking up, I saw ornaments hanging from the ceiling. A moon, a couple of stars… oh, and look. "COULD IT BE…? ...MY ONE TRUE LOVE?"

"No, I'm not."

Mettaton started to descend the stairs. He was wearing a ridiculous blue dress that looked too small for him. He held the edges of the skirt high, although I didn't know why, since he didn't have legs to trip over it.

Then he started to sing in his robotic voice, "Oh my love, please run away… Monster King, forbids your stay… Humans must, live far apart… Even if, it breaks my heart." Admittedly, I found myself nodding along to the music. Pink petals started to fall from nowhere, like confetti. "They'll put you, in the dungeon… It'll suck, and then you'll die a lot…" I giggled. "Really sad, you're gonna die… Cry cry cry, so sad it's happening…" I could tell Mettaton was getting lazier with the lyrics.

The petals stopped. Something flashed in the distance. Confused, I frowned. "Well? Continue."

"SO SAD." Mettaton commented. "SO SAD THAT YOU ARE GOING TO THE DUNGEON." His screen flashed red as he pulled out a remote. "WELL, TOODLES!" He pressed the button, and a hole appeared beneath me. So I fell.

Fortunately, it wasn't a deep drop. I landed on my butt, and groaned. Mettaton flew down as well, but this time with a purple flame beneath him. "OH NO! WHATEVER SHALL I DO?"

"You could let me go." I suggested.

"MY LOVE HAS BEEN CAST AWAY INTO THE DUNGEON. A DUNGEON WITH A PUZZLE SO DASTARDLY, MY PARAMOUR WILL SURELY PERISH!" Looking ahead, I could see exactly what he meant. "O, HEAVENS HAVE MERCY! THE HORRIBLE COLORED TILE MAZE! EACH COLORED TILE HAS ITS OWN SADISTIC FUNCTION. FOR EXAMPLE, THE GREEN TILE-"

"I know. I remember perfectly well." It was not exactly the number one thing on my to-do list.

"THAT'S RIGHT. YOU REMEMBER ALL THE RULES, DON'T YOU? GREAT… THEN I WON'T WASTE YOUR TIME REPEATING THEM!" I stared at him blankly. "OH, AND YOU'D BETTER HURRY. BECAUSE IF YOU DON'T GET THROUGH IN 30 SECONDS…" Suddenly, red hot flames appeared behind me. Their heat flickered in the deadly flames, and I felt myself backing away from them. "YOU'LL BE INCINERATED BY THESE JETS OF FIRE! AHAHAHAHAHAHA! AHAHA… HA… HA! MY POOR LOVE! I'M SO FILLED WITH GRIEF. I CAN'T STOP LAUGHING! GOOD LUCK, DARLING!"

The time started to tick on a timer hanging from the ceiling, and I knew it was time. No matter how much I hated the maze, I knew I still wanted to try. Those jets of fire did not look appealing at all. Stepping onto the escalator to start, Mettaton started to sing again. "Oh my love, has fallen down… Now in tears, we all will drown… Colored tiles, make them a fool… If only they, still knew the rules…" I did. I shivered as I stepped into a water tile. "Well that was, a sorry try… Now let's watch…" No! I was only halfway done! "...Them fry." The time ran out, and I found myself facing a robot of deadly terror. Water dripped from my clothes and apron, although I had luckily avoided getting bitten by tiny fish.

"...I was close?" I tried to plead.

He did not look sorry at all. "OOOOH, I'M SO SORRY! LOOKS LIKE YOU'RE OUT OF TIME!" The jets of fire approached. "HERE COME THE FLAMES, DARLING!" They came closer. "THEY'RE CLOSING IN!" They were a about a foot away now. Alphys would call them off soon. "GETTING! CLOSER! OH MY!" The flames were so close, I could almost see them reflecting off and licking onto my skin. I grimaced as a bit actually seared on. "ANY MINUTE NOW!" The flames stopped moving closer, and Mettaton was put into an awkward position. "..." Cue robotic cough.

The camera rang. "Watch out!" Alphys cried. "I'll save you! I'm hacking into the firewall right now!" I laughed at the unintended pun, and the fire disappeared.

"OH NO! HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN? FOILED AGAIN BY THE BRILLIANT DOCTOR ALPHYS! THA-"

"That's right!" Alphys chimed from the camera, "Come on, Mettaton, give up already! You'll never be able to defeat us… Not as long as we work together! Your puzzle's over… Now go home and leave us alone!" Nice pep talk, Alph.

"PUZZLE? OVER? ALPHYS, DARLING, WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT…? DID YOU FORGET WHAT THE GREEN TILES DO? THEY MAKE A SOUND, THEN YOU HAVE TO FIGHT A MONSTER." I attempted to run away. "WELL, DARLING… THAT MONSTER… IS ME!"

I wasn't fast enough. In the next moment, my soul was drawn out, and I found myself suspended in the air once again. With a microphone in hand, he waved at me heartily. I immediately reached for my camera, taking it out to reach for the secret panel. "THIS IS IT, DARLING! SAY GOODBYE!" The camera rang again. "IS THAT YOUR PHONE? YOU'D BETTER ANSWER IT!" Why, thank you for your courtesy.

"H-hey!" Alphys called out, "Th-this seems bad, but don't worry! Th-there's one last thing I installed on your camera...!"

"Already on it." I informed her, pressing the yellow button. Then the camera started to resonate with Mettaton's presence. I smiled before closing my eyes, feeling the gravity tilt around me once more. It reminded me of Cowboy.

My eyes were open now, and I was completely upside down. Definitely embarrassing, especially since I don't have the ribbon to keep my hair or shirt up anymore. Holding it down (or technically it would be up) with one hand, I used the other to aim my camera. I pressed once, and a single yellow bullet came flying out, and struck Mettaton. It didn't leave a dent, but the robot started to moan like it just got busted up with a sledge hammer.

"OOOH! OOOOOOOH!" It sounded so fake, I wanted to laugh. "YOU'VE DEFEATED ME! HOW CAN THIS BE, YOU WERE STRONGER THAN I THOUGHT, ETC. WHATEVER." Then he waved heartily as he left the scene, leaving me in an equally confused and amused state.

Ring… "L-looks like you beat him!" Alphys congratulated me. "Y-you did a really great job out there."

I decided there was no reason to be mean. "All thanks to you." I stated as earnestly as possible.

"What? Oh no, I mean… You were the one doing everything cool! I just wrote some silly programs for your camera." Awkward silence. "... umm, h-hey, this might sound strange, but… c-can I tell you something?"

"Uh-huh. Shoot."

"B-before I met you, I d-didn't really… I didn't really like myself very much. For a long time, I f-felt like a total screw-up. L-like I couldn't do a-anything w-without… w-without letting everyone down."

"Same."

"H-huh?"

"I said same. I used to think that way too. I thought I couldn't do anything well, because I was just average. Average enough just to do things but… not in any special kind of way. Everyone was better than me." I took a breath. "But now, that's changed. Everyone down here, my friends, even you, changed me. Down here, I can be someone special, someone important. I've found more confidence down here than I would've found anywhere else." I smiled. "So yeah."

"A-and!" Alphys added, "Guiding you had made me feel… a lot better about myself."

"An equal exchange then."

"So… thanks for letting me help you. M-most of the time."

I laughed. "Sure."

"Uhhh, anyway, we're almost to the CORE. It's just past MTT Resort." Her voice became more determined. "Come on! Let's finish this!"

"Yeah!" Now marching past the grey-floored tiles, I was filled with a new kind of happiness. One of hope and strength, lended to me from friends like Alphys. Even though most of the time she was more annoying than helpful.

It was the Nicecream man again. "Hey! It's you again!" I wondered how he was able to so easily relocate his station. "Business is excellent here! These two fellas bought all my ice cream! I've actually sold out of everything!" He pointed to two figures in armor, and I realized they were the Royal Guards. Ricky must've spared them already. Then why had I seen them next to the elevators earlier before? Unless…

Unless Ricky hadn't made it that far at that point. So he couldn't be too far ahead! Right?

"It's okay, I don't need anything." I quickly reassured him.

"Wait! I've still got something for you! … a big smile! How about that!"

"Yeah." I smiled back at him before turning to the right to figure what was wrong with the elevator. But first, I found Heats Flamesman.

"Hey, hey!" He called to me, "Did you remember my name?"

"Heats Flamesman."

"Wh-what!? You remember!?" His jaw fell open as his flames slightly diminished. "How could I be so easiliy defeateeeeeeeeed!?" I raised my eyebrow in amusement before heading to the elevator. I attempted to press the button, only to find that it really was broken. Terrific.

As I walked away, Heats Flamesman shouted behind me, "I'll always remember that you remembered!"

I was back at the Nicecream stand. I started climbing the stairs in front of me, and was met with an entirely different atmospheric color. Instead of the usual bright and dry hotlands, I was now in a cool purple surrounding. The floor was paved with purple bricks, and in front of me was the one and only MTT Hotel. Above the door was a checkered pattern and a yellow sign that said: MTT. There were little golden Mettatons with angel wings, pasted next to the sign. It was funny, and fancy. The doors and windows were bright and yellow, with a thick red carpet laid out right in front of the doorway. There was a note on the ground, but I ignored it. I was more focused on the skeleton standing in front of the bush decoration.

I immediately ran up to him. "Hey." He said.

"Don't 'hey' me!" I pouted. "Where did you go? Why did you leave so suddenly?"

He ignored me. "I heard you're going to the core. How about grabbing some dinner with me first?" He stared at me curiously with his eyesockets. I stared back. I had been so upset about his leaving, I had almost forgot about this part of the game.

But it was just a part of a game. Not a date or anything. Wait... a date? I dispelled the thoughts as quickly as possible. It wasn't anything like that! After all, he probably had to do this with Ricky too. "...Yeah." I agreed as seriously as possible.

"great, thanks for treating me." I pouted as he headed to the side. "Over here. i know a shortcut." Smiling, I started to follow him, but then he stopped me. I frowned at him, confused.

"this requires a hand." He winked before extending his bony hand to me, and I just stared at it, baffled.

"E-eh?"

"you can't follow me through the shortcut unless we're touching." He explained. "it's different from exiting doors." I nodded feebly and slowly raised my hand to his. He grasped it gently, and I could feel him pulling me along. Cheeks flushed, I held his hand tighter. The bony phalanges of his fingertips dug slightly deeper into my skin. He lead me straight into a wall.

And when we popped out on the other side, we were in MTT Hotel's restaurant. Sans finally let go of my hand, and I felt slightly disappointed. But still excited, I ran to one side of a table and plopped down into a chair. Sans followed suit, but on the other side instead.

The place sure was fancy. Everything was purple, the walls, tablecloth, and even the floor checkerboarded. A few utensils were laid in front of me, and I wondered if I would even use them. After all, you could never even actually eat in the restaurant in the game. The whole room was rather dark, but a single candle was lighted in the middle of the table, giving out a serene romantic mood.

No! No romance! This is not a date. Just…just a-

"Well, here we are." Sans stated, breaking the mood slightly. "so. your journey's almost over, huh?"

"Huh?" I frowned.

"You must really want to go home." He added. I was about to protest to it, but then he continued, "hey. I know the feeling, buddo. Though… maybe sometimes it's better to take what's given to you."

"Yeah, I know." I sighed. "Down here I've already got food, drink, friends and all that."

"so you already know." He prompted, skull on hand. "Then is what you have to do… really worth it?"

I frowned again. "I'm not really doing anything."

Sans turned away, seeming to be in thought. "... ah, forget it. I'm rootin' for ya, kid."

I could feel myself silently steaming. "Aren't you even listening to me?"

"hey."

"No, don't 'hey' me! You're sticking way to strictly to the game rules! Quoting your lines exactly…" I growled. "You don't have to, you know! Because I'm talking to you! Do you get that?" Only after my outburst did I realize it made no sense. Why was I so offended by a single act of normal behavior for a game character? Especially since I hadn't been so mad at all the other characters either… just Sans.

"heh." He chuckled. "The game rules? quoting my lines? "

"H-huh?" Crap. What exactly had I just ranted about?

His eye sockets turned darker. "is this just a game to you?"

I tried to pretend. "I dunno what you're talking about." If things got out of hand, I could always load a save. Then none of this would've happened.

"don't lie to me, kid. i'm not stupid." He silently growled, pupils turned away. "you think I don't notice when you're about to slip up? you think I don't see you doing and quoting things before they even happen?" I gulped guiltily.

"...No?" I squeaked hopefully.

Sans leaned forward more, eye sockets boring into me. "Buddy, i remember it perfectly well. the way you quoted my whoopee cushion in the hand trick before I did. the way you quote the underground as 'this place.' how you knew I liked ketchup before I even told you." I attempted to interrupt him, but he kept on listing things, starting to count them on his fingers. "The way you reacted and commented on 'Flowey.' the way you flinched away from the telescope prank before you even fully looked into it. how you readily tell me your pockets are full and lean forward to receive a hotdog on the head." He slightly cracked a grin at that, but a moment later, it was gone.

Apparently, I had slipped up too much. I had thought my actions were well concealed, but Sans noticed them like a hawk. "Well-"

"i have a bone to pick with ya." Sans interrupted. "see, i've noticed a couple of things going wrong with the timespace continuum. not much, just a tiny bend. it wasn't something worth worrying about, but i further investigated into it. And when I figured out what your soul color was, I realized the person messing around was you."

"How do you even know what my soul color is?" I asked, incredulous. He hadn't had any chance to see it. And in my public fight with Cowboy, the crowd had only seen me with a yellow soul. Literally, only Cowboy and Joyce knew my real soul color at the moment. So how did Sans know as well?

Sans looked bored and went back to counting on his fingers. "Ball game." One finger. "Fight with Joyce." Two fingers. "Fight with Undyne." He gave up and sighed. "A lot of places, kiddo."

But only one item he listed bothered me. "Fight with Joyce?" I could feel myself deflating. "You watched me fight Joyce and you didn't do anything?"

"wut was I supposed to do?" Sans asked nonchalantly, leaning back into his chair.

"Help!" I almost yelled. "You could've helped! But you didn't!"

"kiddo, i think you're forgetting a couple of things. first off, you can go back in time. so why do you care if you die? you'll just come right back, am i right?" His uncaring tone left me bristling. "second off, you were doing perfectly fine. there wasn't a need for me to get myself involved." I wanted to comment to that, but he plowed on, leaving me no room to talk. "and third of all, i did help. in your little escape battle with undyne? yeah, that. see, if it weren't for me…" His eye sockets turned to emptiness, showing nothing but darkness inside them. "...buddy. You'd be dead where you stand."

I could feel myself shivering. But not from fear, or sadness, or shock. But from betrayal. "Huh. I see." My tone monotone, I stood myself up, pushing the seat away. "I see exactly what you mean. I see exactly who you are."

"..." Sans didn't respond, just listened carefully.

"You really are lazy. Just a selfish, lazy bag of bones!" That time, it wasn't a compliment. I slammed my palm down on the table, trying to relieve my stress build-up. "Could've helped, but didn't, since you thought 'your assistance wasn't required.' " I put quotation marks in the air. "Uh-huh, exactly. I know you saved my life. I know it. So thanks for rubbing it in."

I tried to ignore the expression of hurt on his face. Sans ducked his head down and muttered something under his breath. It sounded like, "...don't appreciate sarcasm."

"And… and!" I started to sniff, and at first I thought it was from reproachfulness, but when I realized my eyes were wet, I knew it was something else entirely. "I thought you were someone that cared! But no." I turned my head away, feeling a tear trickle down my cheek. He didn't really care about my well-being. He only brought me to Grillby's to study my behavior, and brought me here to talk about saves and reloads and shit. I couldn't believe I had originally thought it was a date. "Obviously, you don't."

And although Sans was supposed to leave first in the game, I decided to not follow the rules. This time, I was leaving first. Decision made, I strided away, quickly and firmly. The fact that he didn't choose to stop me only confirmed my suspicions further. He didn't care. At all.

Only when I was out the room did I start running. The fat green fish monster gave me a strange look, but I didn't care. After all, Sans didn't, so why should I?

Once I was out, I ran next to the fountain and crouched down onto the soggy carpet. The fountain was broken, and I just happened to be sitting right next to the spout from which the Mettaton sculpture was throwing up its water. Little droplets bounced onto my head, and soon, I was soaked.

Sure that Sans wouldn't follow me, I cried. I had thought this meeting would be fun. I had thought it would be all cute and calm and all that dreamy stuff. I thought that maybe he liked me. Or at least, had some kind of feelings?...

No, I was just overlooking it. I was always doing that. Maybe I had looked to far into things, seeing gestures that didn't mean what they were. I had just assumed that... that it was more that it seemed.

Why did the rejection hurt so much?

Then, a thought occurred to me. Sure, it may not make much of a difference, and it may not change Sans' mind. But this meeting sorely sucked. It was completely messed up. If I could do it again, maybe it could result with a better ending. I may not get what I want, but at least Sans won't have to watch me running from a room crying.

I could load a save and do it again.

And... I hated how that chapter ended. It was supposed to be fluffy, but ended up in the worst way possible. -_-

So now to lighten up my mood, I've created a better Alternate Ending! :D

"Well, here we are." Sans stated, looking at me pointedly. "so. your journey's almost over, huh?"

"Huh?" I asked, frowning.

"You must really want to go home." He repeated. "hey. I know the feeling, buddo. Though… maybe sometimes it's better to take what's given to you."

I rolled my eyes. I already knew the program. "Down here I've already got food, drink, friends and all that."

"so you already know." He prompted, skull on hand. "Then is what you have to do… really worth it?"

I frowned again. "I'm not really doing anything." Or was I? After all, I was still moving forward to Asgore's palace, so it would make the false impression I was trying to get somewhere…

And anyways, why did Sans care of all people? Unless…

After an awkward silence, Sans turned away, seeming to be in thought. In the end, he finally concluded on saying, "... ah, forget it. I'm rootin' for ya, kid."

For some reason, his acceptance made me feel lighter, more relieved. I don't know why. Maybe just the feeling of being accepted in a world of monsters is pleasing, to know that you fit in and that others are okay with you. And… to know that Sans will be rooting for me whether I'm leaving or staying is pretty darn satisfactory. "...Thanks." I smiled.

"hey." He drummed his fingers on the table, looking slightly worried for some reason. "let me tell you a story."

Although I had already heard the story from the game's perspective, I supposed that hearing it directly from Sans would be different, so I nodded.

"So i'm a sentry in snowdin forest, right? i sit out there and watch for humans." He pauses before he admits, "it's kinda boring." I nod for him to continue. "Fortunately, deep in the forest… there's this huge locked door. and it's perfect for practicing knock knock jokes."

I swallowed before gulping. This was the Ruins he was talking about, and he was about to meet Toriel. For some reason, that wrenched a small knot in the pit of my stomach. "Yeah?" It came out a bit sharper than was intended.

Sans frowns at my reaction but shrugs before continuing. "So one day, i'm knocking 'em out, like usual. i knock on the door and say 'knock knock.' and suddenly, from the other side…"

"Someone responds?" I guessed.

"i hear a woman's voice." Sans confirmed. "And she says, 'who's there?' so, naturally, i respond, 'dishes.' 'dishes who?' 'dishes a very bad joke.'" Cue a wink from Sans. "then she just howls with laughter. like it's the best joke she's heard in a hundred years."

Despite the fact that I almost hate this story, the way Sans tells it is enveloping. I naturally find myself leaning in for more, and it kinda embarasses me. I gotta admit, he's a good story-teller.

"so I keep 'em coming, and she keeps laughing. She's the best audience I've ever had." He admits. "Then, after a dozen of 'em, she knock and says… 'knock knock!' i say 'whos there?' 'old lady!' 'old lady who?' 'oh! I did not know you could yodel!'" Cue another wink from Sans. "wow. Needless to say, this woman was very good."

I wanted to point out that I was just as good, but I managed to keep my mouth shut.

"we kept telling each other jokes for hours. eventually, i had to leave. Papyrus gets kinda cranky without his bedtime story. but she told me to come by again, and so i did. then i did again. and again. It's a thing now. telling bad jokes through the door. It rules."

He then turns away again, as if thinking about how he should continue the story. I debate on whether to stop him, or listen. After all, he was going to get into the touchy part now.

I decided to listen. "...one day, though, i noticed she wasn't laughing very much. I asked her what was up. then she told me something strange. 'If a human ever comes through this door… could you please, please promise something? Watch over them, and protect them, will you not?'" Sans shrugged nonchalantly. "now, i hate making promises. And this woman, i don't even know her name." The word Toriel gets stuck on my tongue, but I don't say it. "but... someone who sincerely likes bad jokes… had an integrity you can't say 'no' to." Then he turns away, like he just admitted something terrible.

This would be my last chance to flee. But I wanted to stay with Sans. Which only left room for one choice. I ruffled around in my pockets for them.

"Do you get what i'm saying?" Sans looked to me. "that promise i made to her… you know what would've happened if she didn't say anything? … buddy." There. I plugged them in, careful to make sure I blocked out all noises. Sans hadn't noticed my movement.

He turned away, but two seconds later, he was facing me again. His eye sockets were dark as night, and I tried not to flinch away. There were no signs of any comical pinprick pupils, but his grin was still there. Wide and unchanging, the look made him look kinda crazy. Or sadistic.

I waited, but heard nothing. A few moments later, the pupils were back, and Sans was giving me the most strangest look, like he was wondering why I wasn't reacting. Or if I had even heard in the first place.

I shook my head and smiled before removing the earplugs from my ears. "Sorry, I didn't hear that. Would you care to repeat it?" I grinned innocently, mouth stretching wider at Sans' bewildered expression.

He shook his head, like he was thinking. There was a slightly sheepish grin on his face. He looked rather bothered by my actions. Obviously, he wasn't going to repeat the statement. The so-called "dramatic tension" was gone now.

"Hey, lighten up, bucko!" I grinned, winking. "I'm just joking with you."

"Welp, besides…" San shrugged. "haven't I done a great job protecting you? i mean, look at yourself. You haven't died a single time." He paused. "That's right, isn't it? well, chalk it up to my great skills. … heh."

"Yeah." I agreed. "In times of life threatening moments.

"...Undyne chase." Sans suggested.

"Good times, huh?" I grinned.

"hey look," Sans stared pointedly behind me. "the grub's here." Eyebrows up skeptically, I looked behind my shoulder. Sure enough, there was a monster waiter, holding a tray full of delicious looking food and goodies. I couldn't believe this was actually happening. After all, the game never allowed it…

My face beaming, I stared back at Sans. "That's awesome!"

"yep." He grinned, looking chillax.

"Wait…" I frowned, watching the waiter set the food on the table. "...Is this a date?"

Sans seemed slightly surprised, but he didn't seem ready to veto my question. "If you want it to be." He shrugged.

I could only smile. "Cool." Then I dug in.

~End of Alternate Ending